Reason Netflix, Disney Plus and Amazon Prime customers ‘going back to DVDs’
HMV's boss says streaming service customers are going back to buying TV and film on DVD and Bluray for three key reasons.
Physical media chain HMV has blamed a surprise rebound in DVD, Bluray and 4K Bluray sales on streaming platform customers deciding to go back to buying discs.
HMV reported an increase in sales of DVD, Bluray and 4K Bluray titles for the first time since the explosion in popularity of streaming services like Netflix, Disney Plus, Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV.
Even more services like Paramount Plus and Britbox have since launched, giving customers an ever increasing number of platforms to subscribe to for content.
HMV boss Phil Halliday told ITV that streaming service price rises, ‘uncertainty’ over which shows or films are on which platforms and price rises in subscription services are to blame for customers ditching streaming for discs again.
He said: “It’s been really positive to see the physical products in visual back in growth – 4K and Blu-Ray have been doing particularly well.
“It’s a bit like people buying music physically, in that we are getting a lot of people wanting to collect certain titles. Releases have picked up as well, and we have some really good titles like Challengers coming out at the moment.
“When streaming first came out I think a lot of people saw it as cheap and with huge breadth of choice, but I’m not sure people see it like that now.
“People are willing to pay for a physical copy of shows or films they know they will rewatch.”
How much does Netflix cost?
Netflix now prices at £17.99 per month for 4K, while ad-supported tiers start at £4.99 for HD only.
Disney Plus is £10.99 per month for 4K, or £4.99 with ads at HD quality.
Amazon Prime Video starts at £5.99 for just video only (no deliveries) but costs £8.99 for deliveries as well. However, it recently added a £3 per month ‘ad free’ fee for subscribers, bringing the real cost to £11.99 per month for Amazon Prime Video with full membership benefits and no ads.
Meanwhile, a single Bluray can be found for as little as £5 in sales, up to £24.99 for a brand new 4K film release.
